Sam stared at the back of her brown head, eyes wide, as she wiped a cocktail of blood and sweat from her red face with the back of her hand, clutching an angel blade.
"Do you know who I am?"
The demon smirked, saying nothing.
She scoffed. "Who am I kidding, of course you do. Right?" It still did not answer.
"I'm not afraid of you," is all it said.
"You damn well should be," she laughed.
"Why?" It cocked its head. "Because you're 'dangerous'?" It spat. "Please, you're just like me." Her face did not change. The demon glanced back up at the devils trap spray painted on the ceiling. "Why would you lock up one of your own kind?"
"You are not my kind," she declared, voice a little too harsh.
"Hm." It looked behind the girl to the Winchesters and winked. "Hey, boys." They straightened, tightening their grips on their weapons. "Glad to see you haven't changed a bit. Still hypocrites and crybabies."
Dean Winchester rolled his eyes. "Please," he muttered. The demon's eyes flashed hungrily as it looked back to the girl.
"What do you want?" it droned.
"To find the first one."
It blinked. "The first what?"
"The first one of my family." She took a step closer. "The demon that started this whole mess, the reason I'm--"
"Like me?" She pressed her lips together, bending forward the slightest bit. The demon laughed. "Even if I knew, why would I tell you?" She opened her mouth, but it spoke for her. "Because you can hurt me?" It snorted.
Dean looked down his nose at it in distaste. "I suggest you do what she says." It was the first either of the boys had spoken to it.
It snarled at him. "I don't know, okay? I'm just a crossroads demon, info like that comes from higher up the food chain."
Jordan spun the blade in her hand, eyes alight with fire. "Then tell me how to find someone who does know." She came even closer, the metal buttons on her coat gleaming in the moonlight.
******
Dani popped the cap off the bottle of the beer and took a swig, leaning against the motel counter. Sam and Dean watched her from where they sat at the wobbly wooden table.
"Well," Dean sighed. "That was... something!"
Dani did not respond, just glanced at him with the bottle still pressed to her mouth.
"Dani," Sam began, staring up at her dark, clouded eyes. "We've been doing this for a while and, I mean, we haven't found anything--"
"We will," she insisted.
His mouth worked. "Yeah, but, we-- I was wondering if, maybe, you would be okay with another case?" She simply looked at him, which he took as a sign to continue. "It's good to take a step back, especially when the trail runs as cold as this, and it isn't like there aren't other cases out there--"
"You can go." She put her beer down and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "If you're sick of it. I get it."
"The point is that you come," Dean muttered.
Dani shrugged. "Why would I need to?"
"Because we obviously aren't going anywhere. So, might as well do something productive on a hunt." He clenched his jaw as they stared one another down. Sam seemed visibly uncomfortable with his brother's straight-forward approach, who did not seem to care.
Dani bit the inside of her cheek, thinking. "Okay." Both brothers sagged with relief. "But, after we get right back on this."
Sam nodded and Dean just tipped his beer bottle back. Sam watched as she left the room and went into the bathroom without another word.
"This wasn't a good idea," he groaned, putting his face in his hands.
"It was a better idea than letting her do this on her own," Dean stated plainly. His brother shrugged, and he patted his shoulder.
"Hopefully this hunt'll be good for her," Dean thought aloud. With a sniff, he put his beer down and went to gather his things.
******
Dani pulled into a parking spot next to the impala as the boys got out of their car. Sam nodded at her with a tight smile, to which she saluted back.
She could feel the tension between the brothers, and the tension between she and them. They were unhappy with the course she was taking in looking for her demon past, it was clear. But, she did not care if they thought she was going to get herself killed or go insane. In the end, it would all be worth it.
Dani was not sure if she bought the whole "taking a step back" reason Sam offered her when suggesting a new hunt. But, if this was what it would take for them to stay on her side, so be it.
The trio walked into the motel lobby and booked two separate rooms without speaking much to one another. Prolonging the silence, the brothers went into their room while she retreated to her own and changed into her federal agent costume and slapped on a bit of powder and mascara. Surprisingly, she was done before they were, their car still vacant and alone. With a shrug, she knocked on the door two rooms down from her own.
"You lot ready yet?" she called through the wood.
"One sec," she could just make out Dean's grumble. Her shoulders bounced with a chuckle.
Sam opened the door, exhaling with a smile. "Almost done."
She nodded once, eyeing his forced grin suspiciously. He cleared his throat and stepped aside, letting her in. Still watching him, Dani entered and found Dean staring at a mirror, fighting with his tie. Amused, she leaned against the wall and watched him win his struggle. Finally, he turned to her with a sigh.
"Let's go." Without another word, he led Sam and Dani to where their cars were parked. With one last look at Sam, who walked stiffly, Dani got into her car and followed the impala to the police station.
At the station, Sam and Dean exited their car simultaneously while Dani gathered some things that fell out of her purse on the drive. Dean, straightening his tie, went into the building while Sam waited for her.
"What's happened here, again?" She asked him as she closed her convertible door.
"Three suicides in the same week," he explained. "All healthy, comfortable people. The kind that were unexpected."
"And that makes it a monster?"
Sam shrugged. "When you have it good as these people did, it's kinda strange to kill yourself."
Dani said no more. With that, they went inside, where Dean was already being debriefed by the sheriff.
"I'm sorry, what does this have to do with the FBI?" the woman was asking as they approached. She raised her eyebrows when she noticed, and they showed her their badges on cue.
"My partners," Dean explained. "Agents Bergan and Hawkins."
"Three of you?" The woman shook her head. "I'm sorry to be so forward, sir, but these have already been ruled suicides, I don't--"
"We're just here on our own orders, ma'am," Dani interrupted. "We go wherever the agency tells us to."
Her forehead crinkled even more at the sound of Dani's accent. "Well, alright," she finally sighed. Dani shifted on her feet, eager to get out of the station and into the action.
After gaining the last victim's address, the group split up; Dean went to the house while Sam and Dani looked at the body in the morgue. Dani tried to say that she would be fine going alone, but the boys insisted that "it was fine" and "Sam's going". She tried not to be angry at the fact that they did not think she could be alone, but it was hard to pretend that nothing is wrong with you when the people around you are acting like something is wrong.
The medical examiner hovered around the pair as they examined the body. She had used pills, the scrawny man had informed them.
"Do you have her belongings?" Sam asked. He nodded and scurried off to retrieve them. Dani was distantly aware of Sam looking at her, but she was too focused on the body. So young, she thought. The girl must have been only five years younger than she. Her eyelids looked like paper, veins drawn on them with blue colored pencil. She tried to imagine her fair skin a little warmer, not so grey and her lips more pink than blue.
Sam was opening his mouth to speak when the M.E. returned with a box filled with bags. Dani finally tore her eyes away from the body and nodded at him with tight lips.
She and Sam dug through the box, pulling out a sweatshirt, jeans, sneakers, and a baseball cap. Her purse was at the bottom with some other things bagged up around it. Dani reached for the leather handbag, looking it over, and Sam pulled out a small plastic bag. Eyes wide, he held it out to Dani. Upon seeing what it was, she heaved a sigh. A small hexbag, bound in white fabric with a symbol written in red.
"That was found in her pocket," the M.E. explained-- Dani had nearly forgotten he was there. "Police aren't sure what it is."
Dani nodded at him once again. "Thank you."
******
Dean poked at the contents of the bag. Some bones, plants, and hair.
"So, not a suicide," Sam stated, glancing at Dani for a second, who looked up at him in annoyance.
"Whose hair is that?" Dani asked as Dean picked up the lock.
He shrugged. "The girl's roommate seemed pretty surprised when I asked if there was anyone who could'a wanted to hurt her." Dani nodded. "She said she thought Kristen killed herself because of her boyfriend."
Sam folded his arms. "Ex?"
Dean shook his head. "Dead." He put the hair down and wiped his hand on his pants, cringing. "Said she didn't know that she was suicidal, but thought it wasn't completely out of the blue."
"We should see some other victims' houses, then," Dani said decidedly. "Try to find some other hex bags, find out if there's some connection." She crinkled her nose up at the hex bag. "Find out who that hair belongs to."
"I'll take it to the police station, have them run some tests on it," Sam declared, picking up his suit jacket.
Dani grabbed her purse, making a move to go with him. "Dani, come with me to the other vic's house," Dean stopped her. She and Sam both turned to look at him in confusion. He looked at his brother for a second, green eyes holding some secret message Dani could not decode.
"Alright," Sam responded. Taking a long look at Dani, which made her skin itch, he left.
She turned on Dean. "Well, Winchester." She smirked. "You better not be a backseat driver."
With a roll of his green eyes, he followed her to her convertible. She could not deny that there were significant... differences between their cars, but it was hers, she would never give it up for anything.
When they finally pulled up to the blue house on a corner, Dean was clutching the handle on the roof and was sitting tense in his seat. Dani shook her head at him, but said nothing.
They walked side-by-side up the stone steps to the brown door. Dani pressed a gnawed-on fingertip to the doorbell, which played a little bit of fur elise. A small face appeared in the window in the door, a tan-skinned little girl with wide brown eyes. Dani smiled at her through the glass. The girl turned and yelled something into the house after running off. A nearly identical woman opened the door.
"Can I help you?" she asked tiredly.
The two "agents" showed her their faux badges. Her eyes widened, making her seem more like who must have been her daughter. "What's this about?"
"Hello Mrs. Ramos. We're here to look into the death of your son?" Dean explained. "May we come in?"
She looked behind her. "Um, yes, of course."
Dani smiled close-lipped at her as they followed the woman in. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the little girl peaking around the wall at them, clutching a doll to her chest. Dani nodded to her and she scurried off.
They sat around a glass coffee table in front of a dying fire. "I'm confused." Mrs. Ramos pushed a strand of thick hair behind her ear. "Michael... took his own life?" She seemed to struggle on the words.
"We are just investigating to make sure that's true," Dean explained. Dani sat silently next to him, looking around her at the well-decorated, cozy surroundings. It was true that all the victims were successful and comfortable in life, this one was no exception. Her heart broke for the girl she saw, for she understood what it felt like to lose a brother.
"It is our understanding that his death was unexpected."
She scoffed. "You could say that." She shook her head and rubbed her eyes. "Michael was the last person to kill himself. He-he was actually part of this club in his school spreading awareness about depression and suicide, helping kids, you know?"
"Did he have a history of depression?" Dani finally spoke up.
The grieving mother shook her head. Dani lowered her eyes in thought.
"Did he have anyone that may have wanted to hurt him."
Again, she shook her head, much more forcefully.
"Excuse me," Dani asked, "may I use the loo?"
After getting directions which she would not listen to, Dani disappeared around a corner and was stopped by the ringing of the doorbell.
"Oh, excuse me," the woman stood and went to the door. "Mariah?"
"Hi, Mrs. Ramos," a tall blonde girl said. Dani stepped to the side to get a better look at the girl smiling at the woman. "I just wanted to know if you needed some help clearing out Mike's room?"
"Thank you, Mariah, but I--"
"Please?" After a second of staring down at the woman with wide, pleading eyes, she was given way into the house.
"Agents, this is Michael's girlfriend, Mariah," Mrs. Ramos explained.
Dean muttered a "hi" and Dani nodded once. Again, the small face appeared at the top of the stairs. Dani stared up at the girl, noticing how her eyes were no longer wide with curiosity; rather, they looked somewhat nervous, even afraid.
She was so focused on the small girl that she forgot to move out of Mariah's way and she ran into her shoulder.
"Oh! Sorry!"
Dani just nodded again, watching as her blonde hair swung with each step.
******
Kinda uneventful?
Whatever, this was kinda long and I didn't wanna rush getting to the good stuff. Sometimes you need a chapter that just moves the story along.
Been a while since we've seen a case! Back to the good old days?
I've seen some people saying they think they know who Dani's demon ancestor is, which is so great! I'm glad everyone's hypothesizing lol.
Vote and stuff!
-Sammi Winchester.